Letter to the Editor: Subcontractors working in state should be from state

Published
2:05 pm EST, Tuesday, November 29, 2016

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Letter to the Editor: Subcontractors working in state should be from state

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As a third-generation heavy equipment operator, I know the value of having the best trained local construction workers building our state’s infrastructure. Today, I am writing this letter of concern regarding Eversource Energy, a company that produces and transports natural gas through distribution lines that run through thousands of neighborhoods throughout Connecticut, including the Charles Street area of Torrington.

One need only ask the people living on Wakelee Avenue in Ansonia about the “shoddy” work that Eversource’s subcontractors performed. Or ask the people of both Groton and Ansonia, how many of the Eversource workers’ vehicles had out-of-state license plates. Eversource has a continued policy of bringing in out-of-state subcontractors who employ inadequately trained heavy equipment operators who install gas transmission in your neighborhood. These out-of-state subcontractors pay below area standard wages to their workers who then take the money back to their home states; thereby draining our local economy of money that should be spent here. Natural gas lines, both the large transmission pipeline and the small distribution lines that go through our neighborhoods, should be laid by highly skilled, well-trained heavy equipment operators who are certified to do natural gas work since questionable workmanship can have a long-term effect on the health and safety of the people who work and live in those neighborhoods.

As an organizer for the Operating Engineers, I spend the majority of my time evaluating the benefits that comes from a well-trained union workforce that employs folks from our neighborhoods here at home. We spend our careers seeking to be the best in a seasonal occupation, playing by the rules and always contributing to Connecticut’s economic future. All we ask is to be judged by competition that pays an area standard that helps us all grow together.